We have good news for members who were improperly denied Step M pay by the Department of Corrections.

Your Union has achieved a settlement agreement that provides retroactive Step M status to 124 members including Classification Counselors, Psychologists, and Mental Health Counselors.

This will result in a back pay award for these members.

The affected members were improperly blocked from attaining Step M after the Union negotiated a salary range increase for them. 
The Department maintained that the change to a higher salary range made all of those members ineligible for Step M, including the ones who had achieved Step L when the change was made. 

Your Union filed a grievance over the issue and ultimately moved the case to arbitration when it became clear that the Department was unwilling to resolve the case in the early stages of the grievance process.

Prior to the arbitration hearing, Local 117’s General Counsel Spencer Thal and Director of Corrections & Law Enforcement Michelle Woodrow were able to successfully settle the case in the Union’s favor.

“I’ve been here 30 years and haven’t received a step increase in a long time,” said Robert Martin, a Classification Counselor at WCCW. “It’s nice to see that people who have been working here for so long will finally get their increase. They deserve it.”

We will be sending out more information to affected members about the award.  If you have questions, talk to your Business Representative.